The local art scene is thriving and Singaporean film-maker Yeo Siew Hua is proof of that. At 39, the writer-director already has films like 2018’s A Land Imagined—which won the Golden Leopard prize at the 71st Locarno Festival—and the experimental In The House of Straw under his belt.
Joining this lineup: Yeo’s new mystery thriller Stranger Eyes, which will be debuting and competing for the top prize, the Golden Lion, at the 2024 Venice Film Festival. Stranger Eyes will be in competition with films from international heavyweights such as Luca Guadagnino and Todd Philips.
This marks the first time that a Singaporean film will be competing for the top prize at the Venice Film Festival. Stranger Eyes stars local actress Xenia Tan—of Wonderland fame—along with Taiwanese actors Lee Kang-Sheng and Wu Chien-Ho, and tells the story of a young couple seeking their lost two-year-old daughter, receiving video recordings of themselves taken by a mysterious voyeur in the process.
As a homegrown production, viewers can expect to catch uniquely Singaporean details within the film. This will also be an opportunity to bring another facet of Singapore to light on the global stage, post-Crazy Rich Asians.
Stranger Eyes producer Fran Borgia of Akanga Film Asia says of the film: “Singapore cinema has experienced significant growth over the past decade and the inclusion of Stranger Eyes in the main competition at Venice marks a new milestone.”
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